A Question Left Unanswered
by 93notes
Summary: An angsty fic about Kenshin and Kaoru. Will he leave her? Or will she stop him by telling her true feelings? Depressing! Oneshot


Hiya peoples. Yeah, I know, you're probably screaming 'What the heck! I thought you wrote comedy!' But, I do have other writing ideas besides my twisted humor. And, since something really sad has just happened to my aunt, I thought this up (although this isn't what happened to her). And even though I usually don't even read angst, much less write it, I thought I'd give this a try. But just let me say, this will probably be one of the very few, if not only, angst, that I write. I mean, I don't even like angst! But oh well, for all you depressed souls, enjoy! I'll update my other fics soon.

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"Minna-san! Dinner!" Sano and Yahiko didn't need to be told twice. They dived right in and stuffed all the food in their mouths, before suddenly spitting it out.

"What the heck! I thought Kenshin was cooking tonight, not busu!" Shouted Yahiko. But Kaoru, surprisingly, ignored the insult.

"Kenshin was a bit-" Kaoru searched for the right word for a moment. "-Preoccupied."

Sano looked out the door, and sure enough, Kenshin was leaning up against the wall, deep in thought. "Oi Jou-chan, don't tell me he's still upset about the whole 'kidnapping' deal."

Kaoru sat in silence for a moment before answering. "Aa, he is. I mean, just because some lunatic comes up and puts a gun to my head to try to get Kenshin to become Battousai doesn't mean Kenshin should still be upset about it. It's not like it hasn't happened before, ne?"

"Yeah, but it _did_ just happen this morning. He's probably still worried. You should talk to him," Replied Sano, stuffing his face with the toxic waste Kaoru called food. Hey, when you're hungry, you've gotta do what you've gotta do.

"You're right. I'll go talk to him." Replied Kaoru. But as she neared him, she started getting second thoughts. 'Oh, Kami…what if he ignores me? Or hates me for being so weak…'

With that last depressing thought, she settled down beside him, breaking him out of his trance.

"Hello, Kaoru-dono. Are you feeling better?" He said, with guilt plastered all over his face.

"Oh Kenshin, I told you, I'm fine. It was just a couple bruises and I was just surprised, that's all. But how are you? You haven't said a word since the…incident, and you haven't eaten anything either."

Kenshin sat in silence for a moment, before finally standing up abruptly. Kaoru stood up too, thoroughly confused.

"Kaoru, there's something I need to tell you." Said Kenshin. Normally, Kaoru would have been overjoyed that he dropped the honorific off her name, but when she looked at his face and saw the sadness all over his face, she got worried.

"Kenshin? You aren't leaving again, are you?" She pleaded, but when she got no reaction from him, she got really worried.

"Please Kenshin, don't go! You promised us! You promised me…" Her voice trailed off, and tears formed in her eyes.

"Kaoru, I'm so sorry, but I…I can't stand to put you in danger anymore. If I must leave you to protect you, then so be it." He said, and started to turn around.

"WAIT!" Kaoru shouted, making him turn back around and meet her eyes. "Kenshin, I don't care about what happens to me, as long as I'm with you…"

"But I care." Kenshin whispered, so quietly Kaoru could barely hear him. And he turned around and started to walk away. Kaoru knew she had little hope now, so she screamed the last thing she could say to get him back; her last hope.

"Aishiteru Kenshin!"

Indeed, that made him freeze in his tracks, and turn around one more time.

"If you love me, you will stay. Do you love me…?" Her question hung thick in the air, tears were pouring down her face now. She asked the question again, this time barely above a whisper. "Do you love me?"

Kenshin felt like his heart was being ripped in two, but he didn't change his mind. He knew the only way to protect them was to leave, and deep down Kaoru knew this too, but just didn't believe it. Or didn't want to believe it.

"Gomen nasai, Kaoru. Gomen nasai…sayonara…"

And he was gone, leaving only a broken Kaoru crying her heart out on the hard ground, as her love walked into the sunset, away from her forever.

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Kenshin trudged along the forest floor, the tall trees towering above him and casting ominous dark shadows all over the forest floor, matching his mood fully. And as he looked up to the tall trees, still standing in shadow, he regretted more than ever before. He regretted becoming the Hitokiri Battousai, and killing many innocents. He regretted killing his first wife, Tomoe, staining the floor crimson with her blood. And he regretted making so many enemies that he had to leave his family in order to protect them. But most of all, he regretted not telling Kaoru that he loved her, with every fiber of his being.

And as he looked up at the looming trees, a lone tear escaped and trickled down his cross-shaped scar. Most of all, he regretted leaving Kaoru's question unanswered.

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(Sniff) That was depressing! But oh well, at least I got the idea out on paper (or computer, I guess). Anyway, for all you depressed peoples out there, please tell me your opinion. R&R! Ja Ne! (Grabs tissue)


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